Linkbar

Thursday, June 9, 2011

The above is a piece of a Jane Austen quote (one I found online some years ago, so take that for what it's worth) that has always stuck with me. Jane Austen, the woman who created the mysterious Mr. Rochester, and made us love him despite his many faults, was uneducated.

***And if you stopped right there and thought, wow, she's an idiot, please keep reading. Or don't. Up to you.***

It takes some guts to admit this, believe me, but this is something that has bothered me from the day I sat down with a blank Word doc. I don't have a BA in English lit. I don't have a MFA. Shoot, I didn't even finish college.

I can't write a novel.

I've never been to Europe. I've never been to Vegas. I've never even been off the East Coast of the USA.

I can't write a novel.

But Jane had never gone to college. And Jane had probably never seen Vegas either (snarf). And Jane has been in our hearts and minds for centuries. We were forced to read her impossibly long books in junior high (and most of us, self included, hated them), and then we fell in love with her again (or in my case for the first time) as young adults.

I don't aspire to write like Jane--I know I am my own writer and I can only write like me. But I do hope that someday (soon) someone is going to love what I've created as much as I do. I want a protagonist that readers connect with. A character they can stand by, no matter her faults. I want a male lead that makes the reader's heart pound right along with the protagonist, despite what he keeps in his attic.

So many great authors have said it before: you can't teach someone to be a great writer. Charlaine Harris (a huge inspiration to me) said recently that writing is nature over nurture. You can learn the craft, but a writer is not made in a classroom.

I think there is also the danger of learning too much. I know some people (one is a cousin) who lost interest in art after taking formal classes. They preferred drawing their own way. My cousin, for one, is an amazing artist and now only does it for himself.

I've been to Europe and Vegas, and that certainly hasn't made it easier to write a book-lol! You make a good point--I've come across some very smart people who haven't been great writers. I don't have a MFA either, and refuse to let that stop me. :)

Kristi, I am very jealous of you and Valerie's European escapades! I'll get there eventually.

But I don't know if I'll ever get a MFA. Although it is hard to get past that block that whispers, "You can't do this because you don't know every Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Shakespeare ever written."

Well said! I don't have an English degree or MFA. I have a degree in Engineering!! Engineers don't know how to write or be creative? It took me a long time before I was finally able to consider myself a "real" writer.

Needless to say, but I was very confused when I saw "Jane Austen" and "Mr. Rochester" in the same blog post. I was recently forced through all three million pages of Jane Eyre for school, and I'm very glad it was intentional :)

There are numerous teenagers published. I'm writing a novel, and I haven't come close to graduating high school. You can do it. Good luck :)

Thanks, Riv! The point I was attempting to make *ehem* is that you don't have to know everything about every piece of classic, or even modern fiction to be a great writer.

I WISH I had thought to start writing at your age! I'm amazed at the teens that have been published recently, like Steph Bowe and Kody Keplinger. And Weronika Janczuk made it to agent while still a teen!

I started writing in 2009, and still can't believe I'd not done it sooner.

ShareThis

About Us

Young Adult writers Kristi Helvig, Valerie Kemp, and Lacey (L.J.) Boldyrev are the Sisters in Scribe.

Although we do not believe there are any hard and fast rules when it comes to creating art, we've discovered (and are still discovering) what works best for us, and we'd like to share with you. We hope you enjoy our blog!